Political Suicide
by Chibi Tenshi
Summary: What happens when a nervous, inexperienced journalist meets a very CRANKY Orb leader? Post GSD. AthrunCagalli


Hi everyone! First ever Athrun/Cagalli fic, so please bear with me if it's not quite in character. The title's also terrible but I've stared at it for the last half hour and not come up with anything better.

Before starting this fic, I just have some quick notes regarding Cagalli's personality at the beginning.

1) Cagalli **HATES** giving interviews. So rather than waste her time dealing with journalists, she'd rather scare them off. (Cagalli is not so good with PR, but that's why she has Athrun ) Plus, it strikes me as being something very Cagalli-like XD

2) Cagalli is also under a lot of stress. There's another war that might be breaking out, and she's working pretty tirelessly to prevent this. To add to it, she also barely gets to see her family, and spend **QUALITY** time with Athrun. That would make ANY woman grouchy XD

Timeline-wise, this is post GSD. I try to avoid mentioning how the series would end, and also, I'm pretending that the butchering of Athrun and Cagalli's characters did NOT happen.

Big thanks to Alicia for beta'ing this fic for me! It was greatly appreciated. Also, thanks to DJ and Mitch for previewing this, along with Kirstian, imouto-chan extraordinaire, and Alyson. You guys rock!

Hope you enjoy and let me know if you do or don't!

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Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Seed/Gundam Seed Destiny characters. If I did, there'd be a lot of dead characters, and I wouldn't need to write AsuCaga just because some JERK feels the need to tear them apart. Julie Mason, however, is my own OC, and cookies to anyone who can figure out who I based her character on. Come to think of it, Uzumi's an OC of mine too.

**Political Suicide**

Somehow, Julie Mason had scored the scoop of a lifetime and she knew it. Unfortunately for her, the extent of her journalistic experience was covering a defrauding scheme found in a local hardware store that wound up being slashed and buried in the back pages. Luckily (or unluckily) for her, the majority of the staff at her paper had wound up at either the Earth Alliance Summit or the ZAFT Gala. Lethway Con was supposed to have covered this piece, but the poor man had come down with a severe case of pneumonia, which explained why she, rookie of all rookies, was currently sitting in the Orb waiting room and fidgeting so much that she expected someone to come along and tell her to stop.

To have your second piece in your career be about Representative Athha was a bit intimidating to say the least. It was also more than likely professional suicide given all that she had heard about the blonde politician. On top of being notoriously difficult with interviews, Cagalli had little patience with stupid people. Despite her personality flaws, the Orb leader always worked diligently with other countries to elicit peace. More than a few conflicts and potential wars had been averted thanks to her efforts.

"Representative Athha will see you now."

Julie shot straight up from her chair, her notes on her interviewee scattering everywhere as she did so. "Oh no!"

The man waited patiently as she scrambled to pick up all her sheets. When Julie stood up, she thought she saw a glint of amusement in his dark eyes, but his face remained perfectly dispassionate.

"This way, please…"

So she followed him. The hallway was dark and shadows loomed everywhere. She was almost positive that she was facing imminent death, and if not, at the very least, raising the ire of one of the most powerful political figures.

The imposing doors opened, and all Julie could see was a blonde head behind a majestic desk nearly buried by paperwork.

"Representative Athha?"

Cagalli only waved her hand as if to shoo him away. "Can't you see I'm busy here?"

The man paid no attention to the curt note in her voice. "Representative Athha, Julie Mason from the Record has come to interview you."

Her head shot up. "What? Who scheduled the interview!"

"Commander Lacus felt it would be good PR for you considering what happened at the last interview…"

"If they'd start sending journalists who were more intelligent, such things wouldn't keep happening."

"You sent her home crying, Representative Athha."

Julie gulped, and bent the corners of her notes again. Great, she was going to be easy pickings then.

"Then they should stop wasting my time by sending incompetent people!" Cagalli retorted before noticing her presence. "She's here already?"

"You were late," the man told her with the slightest hint of reproach in his voice.

Standing up from behind her desk, the former pilot dismissed him with another wave of her hand.

"I don't think it would be a good idea, Rep…"

Cagalli shot him a dirty look before replying, "I think Miss…"

"Ma…son. Julie Mason, R…representative Athha." She didn't miss the glint in the other woman's amber eyes at her stammer. Cursing silently, Julie wondered what gods she had offended.

The smile Cagalli gave her sent shivers up her spine.

"I think that Miss Mason would prefer to cry in private."

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One thing about the Orb leader was that while she was no nonsense, she still maintained her social civilities. In fact, it unnerved Julie somewhat when Cagalli had ordered in some tea and biscuits. Fattening up the proverbial lamb, she thought glumly.

"So ask away."

Tea splashed everywhere as Julie's fingers trembled. The firing squad would come sooner than she anticipated.

"God, they really make them clumsier and clumsier," Cagalli muttered before tossing over a napkin. "At least you didn't get any on me like the last one did."

Julie wiped the coffee table, wondering if it was better if she just threw herself out the building right now. Swifter and less painful death – she was sure of it.

"Don't worry. I'm fairly certain they've outlawed journalist beatings a long time ago."

The teeth that she displayed with the smile reminded Julie of a shark.

"And does anyone beside your office know you're here?" Cagalli asked, crossing her legs and tapping her fingers on the arm of her chair.

"It… it was a last minute assignment…"

Amber eyes nearly sparkled at her words. "Oh really? This makes life so much easier then."

Julie bade farewell to her family, and her small circle of friends.

"P-please at least sh-ship my b-body back h-home…"

Surprise was evident on the young Orb leader's face. It was then that Julie realized that she had never seen a more expressive person in her life. All her emotions were right there on display. Cagalli's lips quirked upwards in amusement before easing into a devilish smile.

"Of course. Now, are you going to interview me or were you planning on cleaning the rest of my office as well?"

Her fingers stilled as the journalist realized she had practically rubbed all the polish off the coffee table. Dropping the napkin, Julie fell back against her chair and started rummaging through her purse. Needless to say, her recorder was nowhere to be found. She dug in deeper and began pulling out items from her bag.

A sound of exasperation came from Cagalli. "Oh for the love of…" She reached over, grabbed a tiny circular object and tossed it over at her. "Use that instead."

Julie barely caught the sleek item in time. When she looked at it, she was startled to see how tiny and intricate it was.

"Th-this is a re-re-recorder?"

"Y-ye-yes," Cagalli mocked, causing the young journalist to flush. "You can thank ZAFT for that one."

Blinking her violet eyes, Julie stared at the blonde in front of her. "ZAFT?" she parroted, glad that for once she hadn't stammered.

Something in Cagalli's face reflected that same thought for there was the faintest glimmer of amusement before she responded. "Yeah ZAFT. Made up of Coordinators, fought a couple of wars with them… those guys?"

Paying no attention to her words, Julie smoothed her fingers over the object. "This is amazing."

"It is?"

"To think that Coordinators can make something as simple as a voice recorder into something so small and elegant, I know I couldn't do something like that."

"Press the knob to record."

Julie looked up to see a strange glint in the Representative's eyes.

"The interview, Miss Mason? I'd like to get back to managing my country's affairs some time today if it's okay with you."

"Re-representative Athha," Julie asked when she had finally activated the recorder. "W-what do you th-think about th-the E-earth Alliance Summit that's go-going on today?"

"Washington's nice this time of year," Cagalli drawled, tapping her fingers against the armrest once more.

"I-I don't mean th-that…"

"Wh-what did y-you mean th-then?"

Blushing again, Julie rephrased her question, "What do you think of the issues that will be di-discussed?"

"I will comment on those issues once I hear what's been discussed."

She fumbled with her papers. "But Re-Representative Athha, we already know what's on the a-agenda. Do you b-believe that…"

Golden eyes flashed angrily. "Do you want to know if I think that war can be avoided? Haven't you done your research? Any monkey with half a brain would know where I stand with this issue."

"I-I know b-but…"

"But what?" Cagalli demanded. "You think you can come to this interview, waste my time asking stupid questions, and I'll answer them? If this is an indication of what your questions are like, you can get the hell out of here and let me get back to work."

Her fingers trembled against the papers. The blonde politician was a lot more fearsome than she'd anticipated. But she couldn't just pack up her things and go without a fight. She wasn't going to lose her career just like that. She lifted her head and met Cagalli's eyes without flinching.

"W-what about what ha-happened at Caroul Desert last week? It c-can be called a m-minor skirmish, but quite a few civillians' lives were shed. Wh-while countries like yours c-came in to help straighten things out, some Naturals are still calling for blood."

She watched as Cagalli's fingers tightened around the armrest. "There will be those who will always want bloodshed at the expense of more lives."

"What about those whose lives were lost during that minor battle?" Julie should've been afraid of the anger upon the Orb leader's face, but she had to ask. "Don't those lives count?"

Taking a deep breath, Cagalli responded, "Better journalists than you have tried tactics such as these to get me to say something."

"And Junius 7?"

A change came over the blonde, accompanied with the stiffening of her frame. Cold anger, visibly simmering on the surface, came off in waves. "What about Junius 7?"

"The fragments that destroyed millions of lives… while that war was tempered down, don't you think there's justice that needs to be had for all those people?"

"Let me ask you a question, b Miss /b Mason. If a man killed another man, and that man's family held mankind responsible for his death, and destroyed everyone as a result, is that justice?"

Taken aback, Julie could only shake her head. "N-no, but…"

"Justice is something thrown about by people who don't understand the real meaning of the word. It's not justice you want. It's revenge, pure and simple."

The journalist stared at Cagalli. "You're saying that we should just let them get away with it? Those people who died were innocent!"

"If Naturals retaliate, then what? Can you guarantee that no innocent ZAFT would be injured, or do you simply not care? Destroy them because they're Coordinators?"

"I…"

"This world is so eager for war. Humans love rushing into war without realizing why they're fighting and what they're fighting for. There are plenty who are more than willing to profit off the death of others, just as Logos did. We should've learned with our lessons, but every time, we make the same mistake over and over again, Natural and Coordinator."

"Then we don't fight? We just let ourselves be bullied around?"

Cagalli glared at her. "You're honestly asking for a thrashing, aren't you? There's a world of difference between fighting to protect yourself and rushing into a war without having tried to work things out. Do you know what happens in wars? The military will glorify war, and make it sound like the most noble of all causes. You weren't up there in space when Naturals launched a nuclear weapon on ZAFT, and when ZAFT retaliated. You didn't see how people just ceased to exist as they were wiped out. This is your idea of justice when you blame the actions of a few on an entire race?"

The young Orb leader took a deep breath. "War makes monsters of us all. We just keep fighting and fighting until one day we realize there's nothing left to fight for. Naturals and ZAFT – they're not all that different from each other. Both are human." Then, as if realising something, Cagalli narrowed her golden eyes. "You tricked me, didn't you? I don't think I've ever said that much without threatening to kill someone."

"… i-if it helps, y-you did offer to thrash me."

She still continued to scowl until they were interrupted unexpectedly, warned only by the sounds of a child laughing seconds before he burst through the doors.

"MAMA!"

Immediately, all signs of annoyance melted from Cagalli's face, replaced by maternal affection at the sight of the young boy with chin-length dark blue hair and bright gold eyes running towards her. She scooped him up before he could cause any damage and held him tight.

"Mama! I missed Mama!" he announced and threw his arms around her neck.

"Did you leave Papa behind again?"

The child pulled away. "We were playing catch, but Papa's slooooooow."

Cagalli laughed. "Papa's an old man."

"OLD MAN PAPA!"

A chuckle sounded in the hallway. "Can't you two give me a break?" Standing by the door was Athrun Zala, husband to Cagalli, and father to young Uzumi. "Your son ran away again," he continued.

"MY son!" Cagalli retorted. "I love how he's MY son when he's gotten away from you."

"I was an angel when I was a kid. You were the terror on Orb."

"Kisaka's getting fired for telling you stories."

He walked over, and was about to drop a kiss on his wife's lips when he noticed Julie's presence.

"A-ambassador Za-Zala," she threw out, turning red again at her stammer and the mocking glint in Cagalli's eyes.

Inclining his head by way of greeting, Athrun said, "You must be the reporter from the Record."

"J-Julie Mason."

She was pleasantly surprised when he came over to shake her hand. "Athrun Zala, as you know."

"Mama," Uzumi said in a whisper that was nowhere at whisper-levels.

"What is it?"

Athrun's lips twitched upon hearing how Cagalli's voice matched their son's.

"W-why do-does sh-she ta-talk li-like th-this?"

Cagalli stared at the young boy, torn between laughing and admonishing him. His father, diplomat that he was, saved the day by taking Uzumi and tickling him. "Because Mama's scaring her."

It didn't stop Julie's face from flaming up once more.

"I was not!" the feisty blonde retorted.

He quirked an elegant brow. "Oh?"

"No!"

At the blatant lie, the handsome ambassador to ZAFT laughed. "Cagalli, you must set a good example for our son."

"You know, that type of behaviour will just get you more time on the couch."

With Uzumi in his arms, Athrun whispered something into her ear, and the journalist watched in amazement at how red Cagalli's cheeks turned.

"You're dead meat, Zala," she told him as she shoved him out.

"Mama, are you coming for dinner? Uzumi gets lonely when Mama's not around."

At the doorway, Julie saw the shared look between husband and wife, and Cagalli kissing the young boy on his forehead. "Mama will be there tonight."

"YAY! Mama's coming to dinner! I'm gonna show her Burii-chan!"

"Wait, what's Burii-chan?" Cagalli demanded suspiciously.

"Nothing to be concerned about," Athrun replied.

"If it's anything like the Haros or the MokiMokis or the Tanems…"

He silenced her with a quick kiss on the lips. "Don't worry. Everything's under control."

The flush that still lingered on her cheeks certainly transformed the formidable Orb leader into a woman who loved her husband. The way she had carried Uzumi revealed her love for her child. Under all that firepower was quite possibly the world's biggest marshmallow, not that Julie would ever voice this out loud since she did value her life. But she did clear her throat to remind Cagalli of her presence.

"Re-Representative Athha?"

"Hmm… ?" The haze lifted over her eyes before she glared at Julie once again. "You again? What are you still doing here?"

"T-the in-interview?"

"Well, it's over. I think I've just given you enough dirt to sink me straight to hell."

Julie shook her head. "N-no, I won't write a-about that. You're a n-nice woman, Representative Athha."

"I should tar and feather you for saying such nonsense."

"I be-believe that it's be-been outlawed."

Throwing back her head, Cagalli laughed. "I give up. Come by any time, Julie Mason. I'll give you an interview." She stared in surprise as one of the most powerful politicians shook her hand. "Kisaka will see you out."

"Th-thank you," Julie told her. "I've le-learned a lot fr-from you."

She flashed her a pleased smile. "I'm glad. Now shoo so I can give Lacus some grief, do MORE paperwork, and then have dinner with my family."

"O-okay…"

Before she left, Julie turned around. "Re-representative Athha?"

"What now?" came her cranky reply as she held the phone in her hand.

"You n-never told me h-how to t-turn this off."

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**Note**: I'm also working on another Athrun/Cagalli fic, but this one is absolutely crack. The chapters keep getting longer. Let me know if you're interested.


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